


Got A Whole Lot Of History

by theloverneverleaves



Series: Shadowhunters Love Fest [9]
Category: Shadowhunters (TV)
Genre: Alec finds out he's a Shadowhunter, Alternate Universe - This World Inverted (Shadowhunters TV), Anniversary, Fluff, M/M, Magnus is cute, The Institute is still somehow magically intact
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-02-09
Updated: 2017-02-09
Packaged: 2018-09-23 04:16:03
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,709
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/9640319
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/theloverneverleaves/pseuds/theloverneverleaves
Summary: It's Magnus and Alec's anniversary, and Magnus wants to make this one special. So rather than giving Alec something trivial, he gives him back a part of his past... and his future.aka. world inverted alec finds out he's a shadowhunter





	

**Author's Note:**

> Written as part of the [Shadowhunters Love Fest](http://achilleanragnor.tumblr.com/post/154910608248/shadowhunters-valentines-day-fic-a-thon). The prompt for today was Anniversarys, and I chose to stay in The World Inverted and explore Alec's roots a bit.
> 
> Come yell at me at [isabellebiwoods](http://isabellebiwoods.tumblr.com/) xoxo

Everyone always made a big fuss out of anniversaries. Marking the passage of time, celebrating milestones. And it wasn’t as if Magnus couldn’t understand why. He’d had centuries of time, of course he could. People wanted to celebrate the good things they’d had, how long it had been, the distance between them and a previous point in time. He’d celebrated romantic anniversaries as well as more sombre ones before. But Alec…

Magnus couldn’t avoid breaking his life into three distinct sections. There was before the demon wars ended, when the portals were still open and their world was constantly under threat. Then there was after, when peace came like a relief and a void. Magnus hadn’t know what to do with himself. He’d spent so long fighting, so long struggling and then it was just… over. 

He had very few regrets about this, of course. The world was safe. But the fact was his services, and the services of so many of his kind, were made practically redundant overnight. Not only that, but warlocks were now of a finite number. No demons meant no more strange half breed children popping up across the world. There were no new warlocks, no one any younger than about two hundred. The vampires had gone quiet, retreating into the shadows, the seelies had become even more isolated, and even the wolf packs were less wild. 

There was peace. Boring, monotonous, peace. And Magnus had let himself become a part of that, get washed into the background. Downworlders had no choice but to work themselves into mundane society, to hide in plain sight. The Shadowhunters were long gone, the Clave, all of it. Their purpose had been served, and the last remnants of them that had been ‘policing’ the Downworld had been done out of a job. They’d faded away. They’d stopped teaching their children runes, the Grey Book and their relics lost to dusty weapons caches and Institutes long forgotten, buildings repurposed and reworked into the fabric of mundane reality. 

Children were still born with the sight, with Nephilim blood, but with nothing to see, nothing to hurt them and nothing to kill, none of them even noticed the difference.

There was a new section of his life, though. Something he hadn’t expected. Because there was before Alec, and then there was after.

It wasn’t just Alec of course. It was Clary Morgenstern barging into his apartment for a reading and then declaring she was a Shadowhunter from an alternate dimension, that she needed his help. Something no one had asked of him for so many years. It was sneaking into the Institute and watching that version of the fiery redhead take on a demon with nothing more than some scrap wood. It was watching Jace Lightwood go from an angry boyfriend who thought his girl was cheating on him, to a quivering wreck at the thought of violence, to a boy trained to kill from birth. 

He looked at Jace and Clary these days and thought how lucky they were. Their alternate selves couldn’t be having fun. Shadowhunters had burned hot and bright and died young in a blaze of battle and fire and blood. They didn’t deserve that. At least in this dimension they were safe. In this dimension, they got to  _ live _ .

The fact was, though, that as the anniversary of that day came up, Magnus wasn’t just thinking about Alec, even if he should be. It was his and Alec’s second anniversary. Something Alec liked to celebrate on the day they’d first met, which was that day, the day he’d gotten his magic back. Magic that Alec knew about, and accepted without a second thought, something he was eternally grateful. He was head over heels for that boy.

But the thing was, the more he thought about that day, the more he thought about the implications of it. If Clary was a Shadowhunter in an alternate reality, and so was Jace, that meant they must be Nephilim there. Descended from the angels. And if that was true there, then it had to be true here, because one slip in the bloodline and they wouldn’t even exist as the same people. But if Jace - Alec’s brother -  was a Shadowhunter… surely Alec was too?

Magnus couldn’t help but wonder what his fashionable, put together, well groomed boyfriend would think of being covered in black tattoos from head to toe. He couldn’t even imagine it on Alec. But then, he loved Alec the way he was. Not painted with the marks of war and prejudice and death.

Still, it was their anniversary, and Magnus was not in the mood for keeping secrets. And if there was one gift that Magnus knew he wanted to give Alec, it was the truth. Traditions be damned. Besides, he was exempt from traditional gifts until marriage, right?

Magnus had asked Alec to meet him at Battery Park. It had taken some digging and guesswork to track down the information he needed, memories long forgotten and retired. But they were still there, for those old enough to know where to look. 

When Alec met him at the entrance to the park, the sun was slowly setting overhead, casting a moody orange glow about the place. He looked beautiful as always, but the sun really set him off. Magnus couldn’t help but think he’d never seen someone look so beautiful, so alive. He knew it was a twist of fate that had led him to Alec, a twist of fate from Clarissa’s arrival in his life. A Clarissa from another universe, too.

He couldn’t help but think about how much he owed her. If only he could send her a thank you note.

But alas, all he could do was savour what he’d been given.

They wound their way along the paths, fingers entwined gently. “So what’s this all about?” Alec asked gently. “I know you booked dinner for later, I thought that was it.”

“I did. But I have something I want to share with you first. A present, if you like.”

“Okay,” Alec said cautiously, watching as Magnus led the way forward. “And it’s… in Izzy’s office?”  

Magnus chuckled lightly, pulling Alec forward. “Yes. It’s in Izzy’s office.”

Alec didn’t seem convinced about any of this, but Magnus pressed on anyway, walking up the steps and retrieving the access card that Isabelle had given him when he’d spoken to her about his plan. He hadn’t told her everything, of course, but it was enough. It was a Saturday, and the place was empty, devoid of all life. Which was good. Made things easier, anyway.

The door slid open, shining technology and glass paving the way forward, and Magnus couldn’t help but wonder what the Shadowhunters of old would think of all this. Raziel’s children, their precious Institutes, their Clave and traditions. All brought to this. Covered up and hidden in plain sight, the meaning of the runes in the windows and on the marble features of the room long forgotten. They’d thought themselves so important, once, and now…

Everything ended, Magnus supposed. That was one beautiful, unavoidable fact of life. But memories, heritage… that could last forever. Here it was, lying in plain sight. And yet the simple act of being here and remembering what it was breathed new life into a long dead order.

“What’s going on?” Alec asked, looking around. “Is this because this is where we met?” Alec has a slight smile on his face as Magnus turned to look at him, and Magnus couldn’t help but return the smile. Their hands were still linked, a tether in space and time, and Magnus was so grateful for this. This moment. This future, the fact that this beautiful, wonderful man had let him into a party and offered him a teacup. A teacup and so much more.

“Yes. And no,” Magnus admitted cryptically, and Alec just laughed, moving forward to the center of the room, hopping up to sit on the receptionist’s empty desk. 

“Then explain it to me.”

“You remember what I told you? About the night we met?” Magnus asked, and Alec nodded once.

“Clary… another Clary wanted you to open a portal. In the basement.” Alec said it so casually, and Magnus couldn’t help but be all the more grateful for how laid back Alec was about everything. Magic, warlocks, immortality, the downworld, alternate dimensions… he’d handled it all with a certain grace that Magnus admired to no end. He hadn’t taken it all like it was  _ easy _ , of course. He’d seen the flicker in Alec’s eyes when he found out about Magnus’ immortality, about just how old he really was. But he’d gotten past it. They’d talked, worked out their feelings. Communication was a vital part of any relationship, and Magnus wasn’t about to screw everything up because they didn’t talk to each other.

“What I didn’t tell you is why she wanted me to,” Magnus opened, and Alec simply raised an eyebrow, motioning for Magnus to continue. Magnus pulled away a little, dropping Alec’s hand and gesturing to the window. “What do you see?”

“The stained glass? It’s just… an angel and a bunch of weird symbols. Izzy said it was period.”

“It was cast hundreds of years ago, and brought here to mark what this building used to stand for. Part of a tradition, of a series of beliefs that died out a long time ago.” Magnus opened. He could see Alec was intrigued. “There was a demon, that night. In the basement.”

“I thought you said the demons were gone.”

“They are. It followed that Clary through from her world, and then I closed the entrance so no more could get here,” Magnus reassured him. “But the thing is, that when there were demons, there were people trained to fight them too. To keep the world safe. That order still exists, in whatever dimension she came from. And it did exist here. This building used to be one of their bases.”

“So… demon hunters built Izzy’s office?” Alec summarised neatly, and Magnus couldn’t help but laugh a little. Alec was so good at fitting everything into his world view. It was… extraordinary.

“Shadowhunters, they called themselves. Nephilim. Children of Angels.”

“Angels? So angels are real now too?” Alec asked, and Magnus nodded in confirmation.

“Long gone, just as the demons are. Not that the angels ever really cared for this world in the first place, but they cared enough to create the Shadowhunters. It was a family business. Shadowhunters… it’s in the blood.” Magnus took a few steps back, looking at the floor. Original flooring, too. Apparently, someone had decided to preserve this monument for what it was. Rather nice of them. “I got to thinking, after everything. You see, the Clary and Jace from that other dimension… they both knew how to fight. How to deal with demons. They spoke of things that this world long forgot. So I can only suppose that in their world, they’re both Shadowhunters.”

There was a pause.

“Jace? My brother, Jace? Descended from  _ angels _ ?” Alec laughed, a free sound that Magnus loved to hear, and he couldn’t help but grin. “You’ve told me a lot of… unbelievable things, Magnus but Jace? Part angel?”

“Same person, Alec. Same bloodline. If even one part of the family tree had changed, they wouldn’t have made it here at all. Different lyrics, but the song remains the same.” Magnus snapped his fingers, magic gently tracing the tiles on the floor as Alec watched with curiosity. “Which got me thinking. If your brother and Clary are both Nephilim, then I got curious for how far that extended. How different things could be.”

Magnus made a noise of joy as he felt what he was looking for. He couldn’t be sure until getting here, but it made sense that the Nephilim would have locked away what little of their history remained. All of it, buried right here beneath their feet, hidden to those that didn’t have the power and didn’t know where to look.

So, everyone, really.

But thankfully, magic had sealed this vault so long ago, and so magic could open it back up. 

The floor tile slid back, revealing a wooden box, no bigger than a violin case. Magnus crouched down, lifting it from it’s hiding place and gently shifting it to the floor. Alec pushed off of his perch, moving forward. Alec was inquisitive, curious about everything, and Magnus could see the spark in his eyes at all of this. The discovery, the adventure. He adored it. Just as Magnus had known he would.

Really, no one watched the History Channel without wanting to make their own crazy discoveries.

Magnus pushed the box towards Alec, the top surface of the wood marked with the angelic rune that he hadn’t seen in so long. “Go on,” he encouraged gently, watching as Alec lifted the lid. 

There was a sharp inhale of breath, and Magnus couldn’t help but peer over for a glance at what lay inside. Really, it was a small haul from what he was sure the Shadowhunters had once kept. A single seraph blade, and a copy of the Gray Book, full of runes. A time capsule, relics of a dead age. 

“What’s all this?” Alec asked, even as his hand reached for the hilt of the blade. Magnus wasn’t even sure if he realised he was doing it. But regardless, it wasn’t until Alec’s fingers hit metal and the blade hummed a bright, vibrant blue that he became sure of what he’d already guessed.

“Your heritage, Alexander Lightwood. And since you know plenty about me… I figured it was about time someone remembered something of your ancestors too.”

Alec paused, letting go of the blade, watching as it felt silent once more, resting in the box. He looked up to Magnus, his mind clearly spinning a little. There was a long silence, a pause as Alec seemed to process the information, nothing but the gentle hum of the air conditioning in the background. 

“So you’re saying my great-great-great-great-great-grandfather was… an angel?”

Magnus chuckled. 

“Something like that.”

Alec paused, getting to his feet.

“Cool.”

Magnus chuckled, and Alec stepped forward, reaching for Magnus’ hand idly, almost without a second thought. Even after two years, Magnus still loved being tangled up in his boyfriend. 

“So is this my anniversary present?” Alec asked, and Magnus nodded cautiously. “Damn. I just bought you that cashmere scarf you liked and a nice copy of Harry Potter.” Magnus laughed, reaching out for his boyfriend, wrapping him in a warm hug. It was perfect, really. He could feel Alec was laughing too.

“We’ll need to keep it safe. Just in case,” Magnus cautioned.

“Well, thankfully I live with this… amazing, incredibly powerful ancient warlock. So I figure if I sweet talk him then he might keep it safe for me,” Alec said, a smile in his voice, and Magnus could barely restrain a grin.

“He might. If you ask very nicely.”

Alec laughed, a hand moving up to rest at Magnus’ neck. “Well then,” he said. “I better get started.” Then they were kissing, and god, two years or not, Magnus would never get used to how wonderful this felt. How… free he felt around Alexander Lightwood. Free in a way he hadn’t been in centuries. Lips moved against lips, and Magnus only wanted to get closer, to etch Alec onto every part of him, to brand himself with whatever light it was that Alec carried in him.

Eventually, they broke apart, staying close and Magnus luxuriated in the feeling of Alec’s palm on his cheek. “Hey, Magnus? Thank you. This is… amazing. I’m… I’m really glad I met you. That I let you. For everything, really.”

Magnus smiled softly, turning his head to press a soft kiss to Alec’s palm.

“Well. Anything for my angel,” Magnus said with a wry smile. Alec chuckled.

“Oh, you’re never going to let this go now, are you?”

“Never,” Magnus agreed enthusiastically.

There were far worse ways to spend an anniversary. But as long as every one of his involved Alec Lightwood at his side… well, Magnus figured he’d be okay.


End file.
